Rocker rust

Upgrades and modifications to Trims, Seats, Carpets, Roof Racks, Panels, Dashboard, Bumpers, Rocksliders, Paint, Decals...

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brickbox
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Rocker rust

Postby brickbox » Wed May 12, 2021 11:49 am

Can someone please advise on what would be the best way to fix/slow down this rust?
It’s on both sides by the front doors.
Driver side:
Image

Passenger side:
Image

Thanks!


grm3
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Re: Rocker rust

Postby grm3 » Wed May 12, 2021 1:18 pm

I had/have the same problem. A couple of years ago I tried sanding it a bit and covered with POR-15, then painted with some touch-up paint and clearcoat. It was bumpy, but the rust was covered and painted to match the truck. But that only seems to have been band-aid, as I'm seeing rust again now.
Maybe take it to a body shop?

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palmerwmd
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Re: Rocker rust

Postby palmerwmd » Wed May 12, 2021 1:37 pm

I have also have some rust except only in the passenger side rear.
I am getting it done at a body shop as soon as my second vehicle joins me in my new state.

Unless you have good skills yourself you may have to go that route.
A local body shop here told me even i they do it well it might still come back.

While I wait to have it done, I am drenching it in fluid film to slow down the rust.
Fluid Film is also used in the navy as "naval jelly".

Its not a cure all, but it does for real slow down rust .
https://shop.advanceautoparts.com/p/flu ... uid%20film

(please support Brick and Mortar parts stores and dont buy at Amazon) 8)

brickbox
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Re: Rocker rust

Postby brickbox » Thu May 13, 2021 8:51 pm

Thanks both! Oddly, it’s a little reassuring that others here have the same issue :mrgreen:
@palmerwmd: I didn’t know about the naval jelly. I’ll definitely pick up a can from the local advance auto (I’m with you, I try to support the local stores as much as I can vs. giving in to Amazon).

Is it the cross rails on the underside that I need to coat to reduce the spread temporarily while I find a local body shop that’ll do the job?

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palmerwmd
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Re: Rocker rust

Postby palmerwmd » Thu May 13, 2021 8:59 pm

brickbox wrote:
Thu May 13, 2021 8:51 pm

Is it the cross rails on the underside that I need to coat to reduce the spread temporarily while I find a local body shop that’ll do the job?
Wherever you see rust (minor surface on the frame is not big deal but everything else spray)

You dont really have to pre treat it.

But if you have the time and flexibility it probably wont hurt to run a brillo pad over your rusty areas before you treat them but if you cant get to them or dont do a good job its ok. ( a proper scraping and repaint is for the body shop)
You can spray directly on your rusted spots.. into the holes if any exist.
And from the back as well of your rockers where u see rust.

I went under the body of mine and sprayed every rusty spot with fluid film, to include spraying library into all the vent holes of the boxed frame..
Rusty bolts anywhere, spray them.
rusted suspension parts spray them.
You want all the brown to be wet when u are done.

The Jelly type will stick for up to a year.
And minimize the amount of water and oxygen that gets to the metal.

Other makers have similar products but it appears that for those cases where u cannot properly treat the metal by sanding it, fluid film is supposed to be among the best, so I'd stick with that.
One can lasts for quite a bit, but if you decide to "go to town" all under your frame as well, I'd get a second can.
they are not terribly expensive.

Its not a magic wand but it will slow stuff down. Some folks report having completely arrested rust but I think those results are outliers (or sponsored) or exaggerations

brickbox
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Re: Rocker rust

Postby brickbox » Sat May 15, 2021 2:35 pm

Got it, thanks a bunch!
I called around most body shops around here and they won’t work on rust cars. Seems like most of them only want to work on insurance/collisions vehicles, bummer!

I just spend $1400 getting the AC fixed (compressor was completely frozen and needed a new condenser).

My current plan is as follows:
1. Get the truck up on jackstands
2. Wire brush the hell out of the underside
3. Use a rust neutralizer - any suggestions here? I was thinking of using either Rust Mort or Rust Oleum Rust Neutralizer. 2 thin coats
4. Apply 2 coats of POR 15
5. After all of the above is nice and dry, fluid film it all.

Any thoughts if I’m missing anything in the steps above?

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palmerwmd
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Re: Rocker rust

Postby palmerwmd » Sat May 15, 2021 4:24 pm

I am by no means an expert.
But here are my 2 cents.

Steps 1 and 2 then step 4.

How do you plan to do the rocker rust?

brickbox
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Re: Rocker rust

Postby brickbox » Sun May 16, 2021 12:51 pm

Alright, perfect. I’ll just go with POR-15 and their prep kit.
I honestly don’t know what to do about the rockers.

My thoughts was I could get some of the POR-15 on the under/backside to slow it down. And on the front face, I was going to hit it well with a wire brush, tape it around and then again 2 coats of POR-15. I figure that’s going to slow it down some?

Or am I going about this all wrong?
I really like the Pathy and I want to try and keep rust at bay as much as possible.

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palmerwmd
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Re: Rocker rust

Postby palmerwmd » Sun May 16, 2021 2:48 pm

1)I totally feel you.
I believe from form and function a R51 Pathfinder is the equal (and in some ways superior of) a mid trim late model 4Runner.
Albeit its TONS less money and so is well worth preserving.
I also intend to keep my R51 forever and a day.
IMO it is a future classic just like a late 90s 4runner or a mid 2000s 350Z.

2)The reason I said to wire brush and THEN to POR 15 is because the POR 15 already has rust inhibitor in it and I dont know how/if it would properly adhere to a bare metal that is slathered in inhibitor already.
I suppose you could use those "melts away rust to create a paintable surface" products after you sanded it.
Then clean those areas thoroughly and then add the POR15.
Even though.. the raison-de-etre of POR15 is to be able to skip that.
Dont underestimate how long this will take you.
Do you have access to a lift?
Or really good and tall ramps?

As for putting the FluidFilm on top of it. No need once POR15 is on there.

3)As for the rocker panel yes this should work.
Probably a better plan that just slathering it in Fluid Film. :)

4)There are huge areas inside the boxed frame you will never get to w/ a wire brush+ paintbrush though. So no realistic POR15 there.
For this reason, I would still recommend spraying lots of FluidFilm through all those air holes that reside on the side, top, and bottom of the boxed frame (I did).
It will likely collect just were the water ingress does and which means you will likely hit the rusty spots (if any) that way.
This addition is actually easy work compared to the rest of your elbow grease intensive to-do list.
If you are picky about your driveway lay out some newspaper in 2 layers or more beofre you do this.
The FF if you use a lot of it will drip onto the ground.

PS: Maybe Silverarrow will chime in because he has a lot of experience in this subject as well.

silverarrow27
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Re: Rocker rust

Postby silverarrow27 » Sun May 16, 2021 11:44 pm

Sorry, I haven't been responding here as much as I use to. Just been quick popping in and out of all the forums I frequent lately with house projects going on since the weather is warming up now.

I would definitely go with the wire wheel or sand blast and the goal is to take it to bare metal in and around a couple inches of the rusty area to make sure there's no other hidden rust under the paint that just hasn't reared it's head yet. It looks to be surface rust only from your picture, but I'm almost afraid that if it looks like that on top...it may look worst below although it could just be that salt or moisture/water was being held in that spot by the door seals or for some reason wasn't sealing properly? I'm slowly getting to know the R51 Pathfinder and haven't gotten to spend too much time under the vehicle yet. See if there is visible rust underneath in the same area. If you have rust top and bottom, hopefully both sides are surface rust, otherwise, the next step is to find a good body shop to cut and weld a good quality sheet metal as this is the only real solution to "patching" up rust especially if you plan to keep the Pathy for a long time.

After wire wheeling, sanding, or sand blasting, you're going to find the metal underneath having lots of pits. You can fill the pits with metal fillers and smooth it out.

My only experience with rust is a previous ownership of a 240z and now the Pathfinder(I bought it from CT through auction for cheap - I got what I paid for???) as I reside in the South West so take my "experience" with a grain of salt. That being said, I'm still trying out rust neutralizers myself. Two products I've tried so far is a 2 part solution from Eastwood which I don't recommend(It's already chipping off my rear subframe, but frame seems to be doing okay) and the other is AGS Rust Paint(front suspension and frame and both are holding up well) which is similar to POR15. The key is to clean the areas with a mild detergent or degreaser before coating the area with a rust neutralizer. After looking at POR15's site, I'd go with their 3 part Stop Rust Kit.

Trying to slow down the rust is better than doing nothing at all about it. Good luck!

And if you're asking why would someone with a sound mind buy a vehicle from the rust belt? Well, it's because I wanted something that was kind of already "beaten" to abuse on weekends off roading. I didn't want to buy a clean example to just go beat on it.

brickbox
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Re: Rocker rust

Postby brickbox » Tue May 18, 2021 7:24 am

Totally agree! Our generation of Pathfinders were the last of the best imo and an absolute steal when it comes to value proposition especially compared to 4Runners.

On the POR-15 point, I’m not super sure either on the best way to apply. They sell a neutralizer which from what I understand almost seems like something that makes the surface develop very light surface rust to aid adhesion. Which makes me wonder if there’s any value in that product at all vs. just removing any flaky rust (which I didn’t see during a quick inspection) and hitting it directly with POR-15.

Any thoughts on what’s the best way to clean stuff off after hitting the frame with a wire brush prior to applying por15? I plan on just lightly using the wire brush on the surface rusted areas.

Also, great idea on using FF inside the box rails. I hadn’t thought about that one at all.

This is probably going to be a 3 day project inside the garage. I can’t work on the car outside of the designed garage spaces we are allotted here…major bummer.

I grabbed 2 cans of FF yesterday from Advance Auto. I’m trying to figure out what else do I need outside of POR-15. I cleaner of sorts perhaps?

I plan to do this sometime in mid June so I have enough time to prep. Sadly, no lifts here, maybe someday :)
Plan is to put her up on Jack stands, take the wheels off and get to work.

silverarrow27
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Re: Rocker rust

Postby silverarrow27 » Fri May 21, 2021 1:12 am

It looks like their Metal Prep product is like a paint primer. Neutralizes surface rust and etches bare metal(acidic???) leaving behind a zinc phosphate coating so the final rust prevention coating will adhere to the rust area. It looks like the Metal Prep product is the most important part of their 3 step process in my opinion. You can definitely try removing the flaky rust only and hit it directly with POR-15's Rust Prevention product. The AGS Rust Paint I use is essentially that, where I remove as all the flaky rust. Degrease all the areas. Then paint over with the rust paint to neutralize, stop, and prevent future rust. However, AGS Rust Paint didn't call for a primer-like product like POR-15 though. I think either way, doesn't hurt to try. Worst case is any spot that the POR-15 rust prevention coating doesn't adhere quite well to you can always go back and degrease some more and repaint.

As for cleaning stuff off the frame, you can use soap, water, and sponge first and then finish off with degreaser then hard spray the degreaser off with a pressure washer or a nice high pressure nozzle. I degreased twice before applying the rust prevention product on mine.

As for the box rails, I sprayed as much AGS Rust Paint in can form in all angles inside letting it overrun.

Good luck and have fun!

brickbox
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Re: Rocker rust

Postby brickbox » Sat Jun 19, 2021 2:29 pm

Sorry, it’s been a while since I posted here.
Took the car on a 3,500 miles trip. She did great, except the rear muffler fell off and I had to get a shop in the nearest town fix it. So now she rides with a bottle muffler in the back. In addition, the aftermarket fan clutch failed and was constantly on, so I switched back to the factory one once I got home.

Image

On to the project itself, I spent about 4 hours yesterday scraping off the rusted areas as much as I could. I couldn’t get into rear sub frame much or the front cradle. Today I did the de-greaser spray and then hosed the stuff off followed by using the metal prep as well as I could and then hosing that down as well. I dont have a power washer, so I just used a garden hose with a little plant sprayer at the end. Better than nothing I suppose….
Haven’t actually scraped anything off on the rockers. My plan is to try to get the underside/chassis done as well as possible. If I have remaining por15, I’ll just scuff the rockers and put it on there.

I didn’t take any before pictures but I’ll remember to take some once I finish the first coat. Car is currently outside drying off.

Pretty sure the PO never washed the Pathy the entire time they had it.

Do I need to have 2 coats of POR15? Also, do I need to add a top coat or can I leave it as is because the undercarriage won’t really get exposed to UV/sun-rays?

I’ll spray FF inside the rails once the POR15 is cured up

brickbox
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Location: Rust Belt

Re: Rocker rust

Postby brickbox » Mon Jun 21, 2021 4:37 pm

Got done with this finally, whew! I think got most areas covered. There are some areas of the rear sub frame which were too tight for me to be able to reach and those remain as is and the portion of the frame rails within the engine bay didn’t get touched either.
I got a can each of Fluid Film on each side’s frame rail. The 2 front cross members and portions of the frame rails from where the front wheel arches meet the bumper to the bumper support up front got WD40 because I ran out of FF.

Funny enough, I forgot to treat the rust on the rockers on the outside in all of this. Project for another day…

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palmerwmd
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Re: Rocker rust

Postby palmerwmd » Tue Jun 22, 2021 9:54 pm

Lots of god work done sounds like!! :!:

Please pics!!!! :D


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